Who We Are

Wake Up and Walk® Tour

Mr. Diabetes® at Stone Mountain, GA

The Mr. Diabetes® Wake Up and Walk® Tour was an epic 10,030.3 mile walk of the perimeter of the United States by Defeat Diabetes Foundation Executive Director, Andy Mandell — Mr. Diabetes® to raise awareness about the incidence and prevent-ability of diabetes.

Goals

To help identify the 1 in 3 American diabetics who don’t know they have the disease

To help identify and prevent diabetes among the 1 in 4 pre-diabetic Americans

To provide current and accurate information about diabetes and health to all people at the Defeat Diabetes Foundation website

To put a human face on the disease

To demonstrate that having diabetes is not a death sentence by providing an example of a long-term, insulin dependent, senior diabetic who is successfully coping with the rigors of the disease and living an active and fruitful life

To stress the importance of ethical treatment programs, products and services. Due to the exploitation of diabetics it is important for them to get an unbiased recommendations of various nutrition, fitness and treatment programs and diabetic related products and services

Encourage others to join the effort. With 1 in 7 American diabetics, we should be a powerful influence on legislation and the development of programs to support our needs.

Wake Up and Walk® Tour Trivia

Final Mileage. 10,030.3 miles

Number of States Traveled. 34

Theme Song. “One Step at a Time” written especially for the Mr. Diabetes® Wake Up and Walk® Tour by Lee and Pami Durley of Monterey California.

Major Rivers Crossed. 100 – Including the Mississippi (once at the southern end and once at the northern end), Rio Grande, Pecos, Columbia, Colorado, Yellowstone, Missouri, and Wisconsin

Major Waterways or Bays Crossed. 6 – Including San Francisco Bay, Columbia River Gorge, and Tampa Bay

Highest Recorded Temperature on a Walk Day. 115 degrees in Arizona

Coldest Temperature Recorded on a Walk Day. 7 degrees below zero in St. Regis, Montana

Highest Mountain Pass Crossed. 6,393 feet at the Continental Divide just east of Butte, Montana

Most Mileage Covered in a Week. 114.7 miles in Texas

Most Mileage Covered in a Day. 32.4 miles

Number of pairs of Shoes Used. 25

Most Mileage covered by a “guest walker” in a single day. 13.1 miles by Daniel Rasolt

Most Markets covered by a “guest walker”. Dawn Swidorski in San Diego, San Francisco, Detroit, New York City, Boston and Florida and Daniel Rasolt in Florida (3x), Houston, and California.